Cheaper Driving: How to keep the cost of motoring down
by ISLA CAMPBELL
There are two types of cost you need to take into account when buying a car. Firstly, day-to-day expenses (running costs) such as fuel, servicing and tyres, and secondly, what you pay to keep the car on the road (standing charges).
The biggest running cost is fuel, but you��ll also have to budget for tyres, servicing, repairs, parking and tolls. There are three factors that affect how much you��ll spend on fuel; the type of fuel, the car��s fuel consumption and the way you drive. In recent years, diesel has been consistently more expensive than petrol, but you do get more miles per gallon. Cars that run on Liquid Petroleum Gas are more expensive to buy than petrol or diesel cars, but the gas itself is around half the price. Fuel consumption will be higher though but you can still expect a saving of around 25% on your fuel bill. Do your sums carefully though as your annual mileage may not be high enough to get a return on the initial higher outlay.
To make your fuel/money go further, buy the smallest car that meets your needs. Opt for a fuel�Cefficient or alternative fuel car and you��ll pay lower road tax, as it is now based on the amount of CO2 your car emits. Diesel cars produce less CO2 as they��re more efficient than petrol ones, but you pay more in road tax for a diesel car than for a petrol one that emits the same CO2.
All cars lose value over the years; this is called depreciation. After fuel, depreciation is the biggest factor affecting the cost of motoring and it can vary greatly from model to model. It��s not sufficient simply to focus on purchase price as a more expensive car with good ��residuals�� may cost you less than a cheaper car the value of which drops like a stone.
By the end of the first year, the average car has lost around 40% of its value. But this varies greatly from car to car. Very popular models such as Mini Coopers may lose as little as 10% of their value. If you do 10,000 miles a year, the average car will have lost around 60% of its value by the end of its third year.
To get the car on the road, you��ll need to get it insured. Choosing a car in a lower insurance group should mean lower premiums. If you're keen to cut costs, you could opt for third�Cparty cover instead of fully comprehensive, but you may have to pay for loss or damage to the car if anything goes wrong.
Everyone knows that the cost of car finance is high, but would you really be better off taking the bus or train? Well, quite possibly not; many would argue that running a car is not just their only viable option, but also well worth the money when compared to the cost of other forms of transport.
